DENPASAR ~ A 33-year-old Australian man has been jailed for eight months for possessing 5g of hashish.

Jason McIntyre, of Humpty Doo, near Darwin in the Northern Territory, was arrested outside a Kuta bar on April 20.

He was originally charged with drug use and drug possession, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years.

But prosecutors later dropped the using charge and asked the Denpasar District Court to jail McIntyre for only one year.

Delivering his verdict on Monday, presiding judge Sigit Sutanto said McIntyre’s actions had damaged Bali’s image as a world tourist destination.

“But the defendant regrets what he did and has promised not to do it again,” the judge said. “He has a right to recover from his narcotics addiction.”

He sentenced McIntyre to eight months minus the four months he has already spent in custody.

McIntyre, who is in Kerobokan Jail, says he has struggled with drug addiction for years.

He told the court at his sentencing: “I promise God, my girlfriend and my family, no more.”